One day remained until Demo Day and the warehouse felt like a storm ready to break The air shimmered with mana heat rune dust potion vapor and raw anticipation Ethan stood at the center of the main floor taking in the sight of founders moving with a level of discipline he rarely saw even among seasoned startup teams in his old world They were no longer confused apprentices They were innovators And the world beyond those walls had no idea what was coming

Ethan wrote a single word on the wall Focus It was the only instruction for the next twenty four hours The warehouse quieted at once Each founder nodded knowing what it meant Every mistake now mattered Every refinement counted Every second carried weight Demo Day was not just a performance It was a declaration that magic could evolve and industries could be born

Toren began his final practice run with the intensity of a warrior preparing for a duel His heat pulses glowed against the metal slab lined with precision runes He delivered three sequences in a row each exact each stable Each leaving behind evenly heated surfaces with no scorch marks no sputtering and no wasted mana He recorded the data calmly and handed the parchment to Ethan Ethan looked at the numbers and said simply Good Toren nearly smiled through exhaustion

Lira stood at her summoning circle working on stabilizing dual loops Her bird creatures appeared like clockwork their forms shimmering through the air with rhythmic precision Ethan walked by reminding her to maintain controlled breathing Lira adjusted and the loops grew smoother She whispered to herself a mantra she had learned from Ethan Clarity creates reliability The words carried her forward

Velra worked with the crystal tuner on batch testing Each potion glowed the same shade of calm blue The crystal tuner explained mana calibration adjustments in her steady voice Velra wrote down every detail carefully Ethan checked the vials lifting them against the light He approved them with a firm nod Velra breathed deep as if finally believing she could scale beyond her old limits

Corren’s stone lizard practiced route patterns on an expanded map drawn on the floor It carried a pouch from point A to B then B to C then back to A It moved without hesitation responding to subtle mineral cues Corren tested reaction times using small bells and food signals The creature reacted predictably showing that its behavior was no longer instinct but trained pattern Ethan told Corren that consistency like this could anchor an entire delivery network Corren looked down at his lizard with deep affection

Mira refined her healing pulses treating minor fatigue among founders Her hands glowed with soft mana that stabilized energy flows instantly Ethan asked Mira to measure how long the stabilized state lasted in each founder She recorded times carefully discovering patterns she had never noticed before Mira realized she could predict energy drain in advance Ethan told her prediction was one of the most powerful forms of healing

The rune engraver and crystal tuner collaborated on a larger mana stabilization tile bigger than anything created before They inscribed runes in layered sequences and aligned crystals to generate a controlled steady glow The slab lit the warehouse with warm clean light Ethan ran tests with his notebook measuring luminescence patterns and stability curves The tile held steady The founders applauded quietly it felt like the birth of new infrastructure

The necromancer refined his triple squirrel courier formation Each skeletal creature carried a tiny item moved it smoothly and returned in synchronized motion The formation impressed even Toren who had once feared necromancy Ethan told the necromancer this demonstration would shock Demo Day audiences because it showed value where no one expected it The necromancer bowed his head almost emotional

Afternoon brought a full scaled rehearsal Ethan called it Demo Day Zero Each founder presented exactly as they would the next day No pauses no apologies no second attempts Toren presented heating solutions Lira presented message loops Velra presented cooling stability Mira presented health cycles Corren presented delivery routes The rune and crystal pair presented lighting stability The necromancer presented micro couriers Each pitch stronger than the last

Ethan gave final refinement instructions cutting long sentences sharpening value messages emphasizing clarity and calm confidence He reminded the founders that the audience would judge them not by power but by potential Some would resist Some would fear Some would misunderstand But the right people would see the spark and that was enough

As night approached Ethan dismissed them early telling them to rest clear their minds and trust their work They hesitated at first wanting to practice more but Ethan insisted Their minds needed calmness not frantic repetition They had earned rest The founders left in small groups whispering about tomorrow Some nervous some excited some unable to contain hope

When the warehouse finally emptied Ethan walked across the floor slowly touching chalk diagrams potion stains summoning marks and rune carvings Every trace felt like a step in a long journey One that began not in this world but in his own meeting rooms He whispered to himself This is the eve of something historic

The moon shone bright through the broken windows Ethan stood alone in the silent warehouse breathing steady and preparing himself too Tomorrow would test them all Not just the founders Not just ArcSpark But the entire world